UKRAINE WAR BRIEF DAILY DRAFT
For: 2024-02-06
Slava Ukraini! Since June 2023 I have provided a daily draft for the Ukraine War Brief Podcast collecting news from over 40 sources daily much of which ends up in the script. I will make this Draft available here for those who wish to keep up with events on a daily basis.
INSIDE UKRAINE
ALONG THE CONTACT LINE
GSAFU Morning Report
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in its situation update at 06:00 on Feb. 6 stated that it was day 713 of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
During the past day, 126 combat engagements took place. Over the past 24 hours, the enemy carried out 7 missile strikes, 35 air strikes, and 90 MLRS attacks across the positions of our troops and settlements. As a result of the Russian attacks, unfortunately, there are dead and wounded among the civilian population. Destruction and damage to residential buildings and other civilian infrastructure.
At the same time, Ukrainian soldiers continue to inflict losses in manpower and equipment on the occupying troops, exhausting the enemy along the entire front line.
The Khortytsia operational-strategic group is responsible for the Kup’yans’k, Lyman, and Bakhmut axes, in the northeastern part of Ukraine.
Kup’yans’k axis: Ukrainian defenders repelled 8 attacks of the enemy near the settlement Synkivka (Kharkiv oblast)
Lyman axis: Ukrainian defenders repelled 20 attacks near Terny, Yampolivka,Tors’ke and Hyehorivka (Donetsk oblast) and Bilohorivka (Luhansk oblast)
Bakhmut axis: Ukrainian forces repelled 10 attacks near Bohdanivka, Ivanivske and Klishchiivka (Donetsk oblast)
The Tavria operational-strategic group is responsible for the Avdiivka, Mar’inka, Shaktars’ke, and Zaporizhzhia axes, in the central-eastern and southeastern part of Ukraine.
Avdiivka axis: Ukrainian defenders continue to hold back the enemy who keeps trying to encircle Avdiivka. AFU soldiers are standing their ground and inflicting major losses on the invaders. Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled 29 enemy attacks near Novobakhmutivka, Avdiivka, and 16 near Tonen’ke, Pervomais’ke and Nevel’s’ke (Donetsk oblast).
Mar’inka axis: Ukrainian Defense Forces continue to hold back the occupiers in the vicinities of Heorhiivka, and Novomykhailivka (Donetsk oblast). Troops repelled 26 attacks in that area.
Shakhtarske axis: The enemy did not conduct any offensive (assault) operations.
One Ukrainian Paratrooper And His Partner, Working Alone Near Vuhledar, Destroyed 40 Russian Vehicles.
In air combat during World War II, five percent of pilots—the luckiest and most skilled aces—accounted for 40 percent of aerial kills, according to author and historian Mike Spick.
In ground combat in Russia’s 23-month wider war on Ukraine, this truism holds. The luckiest and most skilled fighters do a disproportionate share of the killing. Forbes reports.
In Ukraine’s million-person military, few are luckier or more skilled than the 79th Air Assault Brigade missileer who goes by the call-sign “Gagauz.” Working in a two-person team firing American-made Javelin anti-tank missiles, Gagauz reportedly has destroyed more than 40 Russian tanks, armoured personnel carriers and engineering vehicles—and damaged another 20.
And he did it along a single sector of the front around Vuhledar in eastern Ukraine. “I do my job effectively,” he said in an official interview translated by the indispensable Estonian analyst @wartranslated.
To put Gagauz’s tally into perspective, his is just one of several Javelin teams in the 79th Brigade, which is just one of roughly a hundred brigades in the Ukrainian ground forces.
Gagauz became a Javelin shooter in the summer of 2022. “I was told to prepare, saw the target, made a launch,” he said. “I hit it, then got a taste for blood.”
Over the next 18 months, he hit at least three Russian vehicles per month, on average. More if you subtract whatever time he spent away from the front line. It’s possible he blows up a Russian tank or fighting vehicle every week he’s in combat.
Gagauz operates the Javelin’s 15-pound launch unit with its day-night optics. His teammate handles the missile rounds. “When I find [and] observe the target, I give the command to the second one,” Gagauz said. “He prepares the rocket while I’m tracking the target—and launch.”
The Javelin is a fire-and-forget munition: once it leaves the launch unit, the crew can pack up and run. And they should, as any well-trained enemy immediately will shoot back. Gagauz even recalled coming under fire from Russian warplanes and Smerch artillery-rockets. “Anti-tank man is a very dangerous job.”
The roads and fields around Vuhledar are littered with the wrecks of Russian vehicles. At least 40 of them are there because of Gagauz.
Zaporizhzhia axis: Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled 2 attacks near Robotyne (Zaporizhzhia oblast).
The Odesa operational-strategic group is responsible for Kherson, Qırım, (also known as Crimea) and the Black Sea.
Kherson axis: Ukrainian defenders continue to expand the bridgehead. Despite significant losses, the enemy does not abandon its attempts to dislodge Ukrainian troops from their positions. Over the past day, the enemy carried 7 unsuccessful assaults on the positions of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
Sinking of the Ivanovets affects Russia’s BSF ability to operate near western Qirim
The UK Ministry of Defence in its Feb. 6 Intelligence Update regarding Ukraine’s Feb. 1 sinking of the TARANTUL-III class Guided missile corvette Ivanovets. The MOD stated that The vessel was patrolling Qirim’s western coast in support of Russia’s ongoing operations in Ukraine. Its sophisticated ‘Light Bulb’ uplink allowed it to send and receive targeting data to and from other ships, helicopters and long-range patrol aircraft.
This latest Ukrainian success highlights the continuing vulnerability of Russian warships operating in the Black Sea. It will highly likely have an impact on the Black Sea Fleet’s command and control elements, probably forcing them to re-evaluate their manoeuvrability near western Crimea. However the Russian Navy is almost certainly still able to conduct its three main tasks in the Black Sea: long-range strike, patrol and support.
A Third of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet Out of Action
According to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, they have disabled 24 Russian ships and one submarine, which is approximately 33% of the Black Sea Fleet.
Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukrainian forces have reportedly rendered about one-third of Russia's Black Sea Fleet inoperable, the Strategic Communications Department of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (GSAFU) stated.
Earlier remarks by Dmytro Pletenchuk, spokesperson for Ukraine’s Naval Forces, suggested that this has severely impeded, if not completely halted Black Sea Fleet activities.
“At the outset of the full-scale invasion, Russia boasted a fleet of 80 operational ships, including approximately 30-35 offensive units such as large amphibious vessels, submarines, and minelayers. Currently, 25 vessels of various types have been neutralised, with an additional 15 undergoing repairs,”
Dmytro Pletenchuk, spokesperson for Ukraine’s Naval Forces
Ukraine's relentless strikes against Black Sea Fleet assets, particularly its primary base in Sevastopol, Crimea, have steadily eroded Moscow's naval capabilities.
Admiral Viktor Sokolov, commander of the Black Sea Fleet, has reportedly been missing since a Ukrainian missile strike targeted his headquarters in Sevastopol last September.
Ukrainian Armed Forces blow up Black Sea Production Platform used by Russia
The Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have blown up an important Russian military facility in the Black Sea and destroyed equipment that helped the invaders attack southern Ukraine with drones. Ukrinform reports.
According to intelligence, the Russians used one of the illegally seized production platforms to enhance the operation of the Iranian-made Mohajer-6 drone, installing equipment that increased its range and radius of operation.
The invaders used this UAV to conduct reconnaissance activities and subsequent attacks with Shahed-type kamikaze drones on critical infrastructure in southern Ukraine.
The enemy also installed a Neva-B radar station on the platform to detect surface objects (from motor boats to ships), which was used to monitor the situation in the northwestern part of the Black Sea.
The 73rd Maritime Center of the SSO began to destroy enemy targets. The special operation was carried out in the area of constant patrolling by the Russian invaders' air forces and navy. At night, the boats of Ukrainian soldiers came close to the production platform. After special operations and clearing the area, the facility was mined. After moving to a safe distance, the combat team blew up the enemy target.
It is reported that as a result of the special operation, Ukrainian soldiers captured important equipment of the invaders and blew up a mast with an antenna. Thus, it was possible to make the movement of ships safer and limit Russia's capabilities in the northwestern part of the Black Sea.
TEMPORARILY OCCUPIED TERRITORIES
Nothing to report.
THE HOME FRONT
Parliament finally adopts a law on the electronic register of persons liable for military service.
The Verkhovna Rada has finally adopted Draft Law No. 10062 "On Amendments to Certain Laws on Improving the Procedure for Processing and Using Data in State Registers for Military Registration and Acquiring the Status of a War Veteran During Martial Law". This was announced by MP Yaroslav Zhelezniak.
"The Rada has reconsidered the decision on #10062 on registers for military registration. All six proposals received votes. After that, the text can be signed by the Speaker and then by the President.
There are 6 positions changed in accordance with Article 131 of the Rules of Procedure of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on the elimination of inconsistencies," the MP noted.
On 16 January 2024, the Verkhovna Rada adopted the law on the electronic register of persons liable for military service in general.
The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine plans to launch an electronic database for persons liable for military service in the second quarter of 2024.
The Security Service of Ukraine neutralises a Russian FSB network operating in Ukraine
The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) has detained five members of the group, including an employee of the regional SSU department, former officials of the Defence intelligence of Ukraine (DI) and the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine, the SSU reported.
The suspects were in contact with an employee of the Russian Federal Security Service, who is currently located in the temporarily occupied Crimea. Their task was to transmit information to the Russians about the Ukrainian Defence Forces and strategically important energy facilities of Ukraine.
The former foreign intelligence officer was recruited before the full-scale invasion while on duty, аccording to the investigation. Since then, he has been collecting information about the locations of Ukrainian military bases, and after February 24, 2022, he has also informed about the transferring channels of foreign weapons to Ukraine.
“The Russian agent also handed over classified information to the FSB about the operations and security systems of the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plants in the west of Ukraine. The suspect handed the information through an accomplice, who travelled abroad as a volunteer, and reported to the resident of the Russian Federal Security Service in person,” the Security Service reported.
Another Russian agent, who previously served in the DI Ukraine, was handing over personal data of Ukrainian servicemen to the Russian Federation.
Another suspect, an SSU officer, was scouting the geolocations of fortifications and engineering barriers near the Odesa coastline in the south Ukraine for the Russians.
The FSB recruited the group members using threats to kill their families. The criminals received money from Russia for each completed task.
THE RUSSIAN WORLD
Boris Nadezhdin, Russia’s alleged anti-war presidential candidate, submitted falsified signatures on his application
Campaign workers for Boris Nadezhdin, Russia’s only anti-war candidate, may have sabotaged his ballot registration reports Novaya Gazeta Europe.
Multiple factions within the Nadezhdin campaign clashed at the last minute over which signatures to verify and submit to Russia’s Central Election Commission, potentially leading to the inclusion of the thousands of “bad” signatures that now imperil Nadezhdin’s presidential candidacy. Meduza reviews the investigation’s findings and summarizes the furious reactions from Nadezhdin’s supporters.
Volunteers for Nadezhdin’s public campaign to verify the signatures, on arrival they allegedly learned that large numbers of signatures collected in Russia’s more remote regions by campaign workers from Civic Initiative were falsified. When this revelation led to a disagreement about using unverified signatures, Alexander Nazarenko (one of the “political technologists” whom Nadezhdin personally hired to the campaign, sources told Novaya Gazeta) forced the volunteer workers out of the cabin and into the street, shouting that he would “bury them in the woods.”
Nadezdhin has until February 7 to persuade the Central Election Commission to reconsider. If denied, he has the right to file an appeal with Russia’s Supreme Court. Voting in Russia’s presidential election will be held next month, between March 15 and March 17.
NEWS WORLDWIDE
Kuleba - Any changes in government will not affect relations with partners
Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba does not believe that personnel changes in the Cabinet of Ministers could affect relations with international partners. Censor.NET reported
"I don't think any changes in the government can affect our relations with our partners, because our partners respect the president's authority to make the decisions I mentioned. This is a sovereign constitutionally guaranteed right of the President of Ukraine," the minister said at a joint press conference with his Portuguese counterpart, João Gomes Cravinho.
Kuleba noted that "discussions are enshrined in democracy, and Ukraine is a democratic country".
"We can discuss tactics internally, but we are all united around our strategic goal - the defeat of Russia in Ukraine and the restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty. And there are no discussions about this strategic goal," the minister said at a press conference in Kyiv.
He also stressed that the President of Ukraine, according to the Constitution, is the supreme commander of the Armed Forces and is also in charge of Ukraine's defence and foreign policy.
Speaking about the possibility of leaving his post as Ukraine's foreign minister, Kuleba said that he would only resign if the president asked him to or if he disagreed with the foreign policy course, and that "neither of these two reasons is currently the case".
Von der Leyen – Ukraine will soon be in our Union
Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission said during a speech in the European Parliament that she believes that Ukraine will soon become a member of the European Union. Censor.net reports.
"The contrast with the situation (in Ukraine) just ten years ago could not be more striking. Back then, the pro-Russian regime in Ukraine was passing authoritarian laws and killing protesters in the streets. Today, the country is adopting new legislation that expands the rights of national minorities, improves the judiciary, and provides a system of checks and balances on the government. This is what led us to start accession negotiations. And this progress is happening not only because Europe demands it. It is a deep desire of the people of Ukraine. Ukraine is Europe because Europe is in the hearts and minds of Ukrainians. And soon Ukraine will also be in our Union,"
— Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission
Speaking about the second anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the President of the European Commission stated that "this is a tragic story of human losses and suffering".
"And it is all the more tragic because we know that there is even more pain and suffering ahead. We know how much is at stake here for the people of Ukraine and for all of us in Europe. Putin's fantasies and fabricated war - and Ukraine's heroic resistance - have reminded us here that our freedoms and our democracy are worth fighting for. So today, we pay tribute to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the fight for this. Glory to Ukraine!" - von der Leyen concluded her speech.
Someone from the session hall replied: "Glory to the heroes!".
MILITARY & TECH
Ukraine finally deploys Abrams tanks to frontline
The Ukrainian Armed Forces have reportedly deployed Abrams main battle tanks to the frontline near Avdiivka, where some of the most intense battles on the frontlines are currently taking place.
Although other Western tanks such as the German Leopard 2A4 and A6, Leopard 1A5, Swedish Strv 122 and British Challenger 2 have served in combat since this last summer this is the first reported instance of the Abrams being deployed to the combat zone.
Russian forces have been making continuous efforts to capture this critical city and have been amassing substantial reserves, launching near-daily attacks.
The M1A1 SA variant features enhanced capabilities, including an upgraded laser rangefinder and a thermal imaging camera integrated into the primary gunner’s sight. Its stabilised sight provides two-axis stabilisation, while the rangefinder accurately measures distances from 200 to 7,990 metres, making ballistic calculations up to 3,990 metres. Additionally, the new stabilised remotely controlled weapon system allows the tank commander to conduct precise firing from a heavy machine gun even while the tank is in motion. The tank is also equipped with a digital control and monitoring system known as Blue Force Tracking, facilitating the identification of ‘friend or foe.’
The United States’ commitment to supply Abrams tanks was echoed by similar promises from European countries to provide German Leopard 2 tanks. Berlin’s approval was contingent on similar commitments from the United States, which were ultimately agreed upon.
It is worth noting that soldiers from the 47th Separate Mechanised Brigade were among the first to operate Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles, which were also provided as military assistance by U.S. partners.
That’s it for today’s Draft folks if you would like to keep up with events in Ukraine daily please consider subscribing, its free!
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Meanwhile, the #Sand-jokers that killed Three (3) of our #Afrikan-american soldiers just last week are at it again.
This time, reports are surfacing from the #BBC of another proxy drone attack directly on top of a barracks at another base in the region housing #Kurdish-soldiers being trained by #Amerikan-officers.
It’s getting real ugly in #Persia, people!
Speaker #Mike’s “foot-dragging” for #Trump on the border bill is killing our soldiers!
This time Six (6) #Kurdish soldiers have perished from the attack.
The new border bill does include funding for #Israel, #Ukraine and #Taiwan mixed in with some tougher border sanctions against the “onslaught of refugees”.
Rejecting the bill that our Senate has worked on for the past Two (2) months is only emboldening the enemies of the United States, including “Das Mullah’s” and #RazPutin.
The newly proposed Senate budget bill on the border includes an expanded wave of cash for more #Texas-border “Rambos” that can then effectively police the human waves of refugees trekking through the jungles of #Panama like rows of desperate fire ants fleeing the South American country of #Venezuela and other Central American venues.
Me thinks we are about to send #Aladdin (aka #Iran) a package of #FAFO-presents to greet the Twenty-four (24) virgins of the prophet #MO in the afterlife. #Bone-Up! #FAFO! #GoUSA!